By: John Thayer Posted at: 04/21/2012 06:37 AMOMAHA, Neb. (AP) - As Nebraska officials seek to fend off attempts by federal authorities to take the state's supply of a drug used in executing death row inmates, the tug-of-war has some wondering why state officials don't simply use a different drug.

The Nebraska attorney general's office declined Friday to discuss the matter, but some such as Scottsbluff attorney Maren Chaloupka question why the state doesn't switch from sodium thiopental to a different drug.

Corrections Department spokeswoman Dawn-Renee Smith notes that such a change would require meetings and take time.

And University of Nebraska-Lincoln constitutional law professor Eric Berger notes that if the state switches, there's no guarantees the state could depend on the supplies of other drug options.